Recipe Notes: For this beef stew I used a chuck roast, which, in my experience, is much more tender than many other cuts of stew meat. The dish is flavored with red wine, a bay leaf, fresh thyme and a little bit of ground cinnamon, which works great with the beef.

Thoroughly pat the meat dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.

Heat a bit of vegetable oil in a Dutch oven until shimmering.

Working in batches, brown the meat in the Dutch oven on all sides. Sear the meat well but be careful not to burn it.

Transfer the meat to a bowl and set aside.

Add the onion to the Dutch oven and cook until translucent.

Add the cinnamon to the onion and stir until fragrant.

Add wine and chicken broth and stir to bring all the brown bits at the bottom of the Dutch oven into the liquid.

Add bay leaf and thyme, then add the meat (and accumulated juices) back into the Dutch oven.

Bring the mix to a boil, then turn the heat to low, put on the lid and simmer the stew for an hour and a half.

Add carrot and potato and continue to simmer for another hour.

Dissolve one tablespoon of cornstarch in a little bit of water and stir into the boiling liquid. If that doesn't thicken the stew enough for your taste, mix up more cornstarch and add in the same fashion.

Photography: I am a professional food photographer in the greater Denver area and focus mostly on stock photography for both commercial and editorial use as well as on assignment work. My photography has won international awards and has been licensed and published around the world.

Styling: Creating a story around the food I photograph is one of my favorite aspects of food photography and because of that I style all my work myself. I specialize in creating a rustic, cottage farmhouse atmosphere in my food photos that transports viewers to an idyllic, tranquil and inviting place that makes them feel warm, welcome and at peace.

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Recipes: Occasionally I create the recipe I use for a photo myself and when I do, I post it here along with the photograph/s. You can find more of my recipes on my other site, The Spice Train.

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